Beastman
SUMMARY:
Beastman, the “savage henchman” was produced in Taiwan, Malaysia, Mexico (Aurimat), Argentina (Top Toys), Venezuela (Rotoplast), Brazil (Estrela), France, Spain, and India (Leo). He is equipped with a spring-loaded waist that swings back with a power punch.
The Leo India Beastman is primarily identified by its hard plastic (translucent) head with dark blue highlights. The limbs are light orange and tend to become more peach as the figure “sweats out” color (a product of aging and other conditions). The shorts are blue, smooth, and textured, with a dark green belt. The whip can be marked India or unmarked (just a batch no) and has a characteristic thick red string that can vary in length.
The standard India Beastman is marked © Mattel Inc. 1981. The accessories are opaque and mid-orange but can become a light peach or very dark brown color with aging. The harness is unmarked, but the arm pads are marked with batch no., such as 15 or 16. The arm straps are marked on the inside as well as batch no., such as 15 or 16. The common version has just the round emblem painted blue, and the rarer version has a large blue triangle.
There are two whip variants for the standard (non-Malaysia-marked) Beastman. The first is unmarked (just a batch no) and has a short, thick red cord. The second is marked India and has a long, thin plastic string.
Still, there exists an India Beastman that is quite a mystery. The Malaysia-marked Beastman was released in the early production of Leo Beastman. The accessories are marked MALAYSIA as well. It's unclear if the accessories are imports given to Leo to complete the figures in the early production or manufactured by Leo India. They are more or less identical to standard Malaysian accessories. The shorts on these Malaysia-marked figures can be either the smooth Leo mold or more textured, resembling Malaysia Beastman shorts.
DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS:
1. Hard plastic head, translucent plastic head with dark blue highlights
2. Light orange-peach limbs that become more peach as the figure “sweats out” color
3. Mid-orange accessories that can either darken or lighten with aging
4. Dark green belt with smooth, blue shorts
5. Red string whip
MALAYSIA-MARKED FIGURE MARKED: © Mattel Inc. 1981 MALAYSIA
ACCESSORIES MARKED: MALAYSIA or possibly unmarked
STANDARD FIGURE MARKED: © Mattel Inc. 1981
WHIP MARKED: INDIA, or blank with a single batch no, such as a 3.
ARM PADS AND ARM BANDS: Batch numbers such as 15 or 16.
HARNESS: Unmarked
WHIP VARIANTS:
1. Malaysia Marked, thin black string
2. Blank, just a single batch number, thick, short red whip
3. India-marked, thin black string